32

Irage forward like a fucking tsunami. The earth shakes beneath my feet and the room goes dark.

"What the fuck is going on over there?"

Jason. I want to rip the earbud out and stomp on it. I ignore him and use the absence of light to my advantage. I know exactly why the lights went out, but the motherfucker in front of me doesn't and he wanders aimlessly like a headless cockroach.

I can hear him; his breathing and his heavy steps. I launch myself in his direction and knee him in the gut. I wrap my hands around the back of his fat head and thrust it down into my knee three times until he passes out before me.

I kick him for good measure and bend down and search him. "I'm blind, and someone took Niki."

"Fuck. I knew it. We should've never let them go—"

"I don't need you to fucking scold me, Jason. Check on her. Tell me where she is."

Jason swears under his breath. "It's pitch black. I can't get a hold of her."

"Fuck!" I punch a hole in the nearest wall. "Direct me to where the prisoners are kept."

My head is pounding and a warm liquid oozes down my forehead and I slide the back of my hand over it before it reaches my eye. I take the gun from the dumbass on the ground and move through the darkness.

The Mansion is in an uproar. Mike's made it in and no one is getting out. That is, except for the tunnels Sara suspects lead out to a road fifteen miles south of the property. Just in case, we sent a group to position themselves in the area. But what they may or may not do to the girls in the meantime is why I'm sure Jason is growling directions into my ear.

I can't think that far; my imagination runs through a dark filter, and if I allow myself to even peek behind the curtain of what they could be subjected to? I'm not sure where those thoughts will take me. So I push forward instead. I'll find them.

I press my back against a thick wall when I spot a light flashing in the distance. It isn't my men. I take in a deep breath and focus on the sound of steps. "I count three," I whisper.

Jason gives me directions, and I ignore him. I know what the fuck to do. He grumbles about this not being the time or place to be hardheaded, but I'm not listening. Someone steps into a table and a vase shatters on the ground and I step out, my gun in hand.

Their light fills the floor and covers them in shadows. The person holding the flashlight feels my presence and points it at me. They've got a gun in hand and I simultaneously aim my weapon at his forehead.

"Dylan!" Olivia crashes into me.

Jason breathes into my ear. "Is that my Liv?"

She's still holding me, and I look back to Jasmin and watch as the man holsters his gun. I clear my throat. "Your tech?"

"They stripped us of all our jewelry, including the earbuds."

I nod and give her mine. While she puts it in her ear and attempts to reassure a beyond furious Jason, I focus on the man. Charles.

Jasmin circles us. "Where's Justice?"

My eyes dart from hers to Charles. "Someone took her."

"And you let them?" Jasmin yells.

Charles's arms flail up in frustration. "Fucking hell. First, I have to save these two and now her? I thought you were a professional?"

I step forward. "I didn't just fucking let them take her. And who the fuck are you?"

"How about we interrogate me later, Detective."

Charles turns to leave, and I call out to him. "I'm coming with."

He nods, irritated. "Of course you are."

Liv catches my arm and gives it a gentle squeeze. "Jason arranged transportation for us. He's going to lead Jasmin and me to it. I won't leave without you, Dylan. Your mother will kill me if she finds out I left you behind."

I want to laugh but can't; not while my Niki is who the fuck knows where. I think Olivia understands, and she lunges toward me and hugs me quickly, then tugs a frantic Jasmin with her.

"If you don't find Justice, I'll kill you myself!" Jasmin yells.

I'm sure Jason reminded Olivia that, although she may be in her element, Jasmin is not. That realization, along with the dreaded responsibility of keeping Jasmin alive, was what most likely convinced my cousin to follow Jason's pleas to exit the premises. And I'm grateful. Selfishly, all of my attention is on Niki's safety, and that's how I need it to stay.

I stay close behind Charles. He's just a couple of inches shorter than me, thinly built, and possibly my age as well. Why the fuck is he helping us? Right before she was taken, Niki was furious with me for keeping my plans from her. But she's got secrets of her own. I'll have to rectify that.

My chest tightens at the mere thought of never seeing her again, of never again tasting her sweet lips or becoming energized by her brash attitude.

"We're close. Follow my lead. It's the only way we won't get slaughtered."

I watch his posture change as his shoulders drop, and I check my gun. I take out the magazine and then shove it back in. "My men have the premises surrounded. They're already in the building."

Charles turns and rolls his eyes at me. "I know. But your men won't find the cellar. It's not on any blueprints. It's a new construction."

Was Sara wrong?"Did the girls find the prisoners?"

He snorts. "They weren't even close."

"And the tunnels?"

"Filled with cement."

Fuck.

The lights flicker on and off and then stay on, which tells me Mike's got the guests all lined up. He's probably wondering where the maggot mayor is, along with the rest of his crew. We're in front of a service elevator similar to the one that took Niki and me to get the file. Charles punches a code in, then slides in a key and turns it. Once inside, he does the same thing.

"I'll go first," he says and I nod.

I understand his need to bestow an element of surprise. I don't trust him, but all I need is for him to lead me to Niki. They may not attack him if they don't know he's playing for both sides. If that's what he's doing. It fucking irritates me that I don't know how he ties in with Niki. I stare at his posture, athletic, and definite military-like movements. Could he be one of her previous lovers? I bristle at the thought and a red film clouds my vision. No, they were all one-night stands. Hookups that never went further because she couldn't stand the thought of anyone lingering long enough to enter her personal space.

I shake my head. Since when did I allow such thoughts to cloud my mind, especially when actively on the hunt? Fuck.

The doors slide open and gray cement walls loom before us like the gates of fucking hell. My thoughts evaporate, forcefully set aside so that I can concentrate. Niki is here somewhere.

The cellar is a fucking maze, with short ceilings and narrow halls. The ground is a mixture of dirt and sand and wireless construction lights are placed three to four and a half meters apart. Charles stops and presses his back against the wall. I mirror his movements and he turns and begins communicating with hand signals.

Up ahead, nine, maybe ten meters. He mouths the next words and my entire body tenses–Carlton and Justice.

I lean forward and notice that in four paces, the floor changes from dirt to cement. I nod at Charles and we move forward. He signals directions to stay low and to allow him to enter first. I nod in agreement. The closer we get, the louder the voices become. At first they were muffled, the sound waves guarded by the stone walls. Charles signals for me to stop and he moves to enter the room.

I roll my shoulders and keep my breathing steady. I've been on hundreds of missions, but none felt like this. The danger of losing Niki feels worse than death itself. I walk further, ignoring Charles's command, and hear Carlton's voice.

"Did you actually think I didn't know it was you?"

"If you knew it was me, then why go through all this invite shit? Why give it any more attention or thought?"

Carlton laughs and then coughs dramatically. He's got a sickly knot of phlegm stuck in his throat. "Justice Blog," he guffaws and almost chokes again. "That little blog of yours has been a thorn in the sole of my foot for some time now. But then I was told exactly who you were, and well… I had to have you."

The fucking nerve of this son of a bitch. I want to see her, make sure she's okay. I hold my breath and slowly peel away from the dark. The need to have her in my line of sight is too much. My eyes dart quickly to scan the area and then they settle on her. I have a side view of a large room that resembles a garage.

Carlton takes a step forward, forcing Niki to take one back. "I do love a good chase," he says between garbled grunts.

There's silence, and Niki's face contorts to express disgust. I hear a click of a gun and my muscles coil. I want to barge between them, but the control in her voice halts me.

"Don't fucking move. You think I won't shoot?"

Three men lie motionless on the ground. Two are breathing erratically, one complaining still. Another is in agony and practically whining. His leg is broken, and he lies on the ground face down, blood pooling near his misshapen leg.

Niki's got a gun in hand. Her target–Carlton's head. Her arms are steady, posture firm–unceasing. For a tiny person, she looks like she's ten feet tall. Confidence oozes off her and my dick jerks. I shake my head. Only Niki could manage to elicit such feelings during the most inopportune moment.

Charles moves into view and Carlton gasps. "Finally! Where the hell have you been? This bitch knocked your men out."

Niki practically growls at Carlton. "Your first mistake was to underestimate me."

He ignores her and points a commanding finger at Charles and then at Niki. "Finish her!"

"Your second mistake," Niki smiles, "was to assume I worked alone."

Carlton's eyes bulge, realization settling in. He swallows and tugs uncomfortably at his tie. He loosens the first button and glares at Charles. Niki takes a step forward. She doesn't even look at Charles or bother with scanning the room. She trusts him implicitly. Who the fuck is this guy?

"Restrain him." Her voice is ice and laced with venom as she barks her command at Charles.

Without a word, Charles holsters his gun and glances at the men on the ground. His foot taps each one and then digs in his jacket pocket and produces zip ties. His men glare at him in question. The one with a broken leg is quiet, probably passed out, succumbed by the pain.

Carlton reaches for him in disbelief but Charles swats his arm, a low tsk sound escapes his lips. "Don't move or she'll shoot."

"I didn't think you were the type of man who'd give up their career over some pussy!"

Charles snaps. He grabs Carlton's shoulders and shoves him to the ground. Then he comes around and delivers a punch to his face. Charles grips him by the shirt and pulls him up. Then he tugs his arms forcefully behind his back to collocate the zip ties securely around his wrists. Three minutes passed as I stood frozen, enthralled by Niki's command of the room. She managed to single-handedly disarm and knock out two men, mangle one, as well as hold her own against Carlton. I step into view then and Niki taps at her ear, stunned. She doesn't see me just yet.

Her voice is low and cautious. "Jason, is that you? I'm okay, in a basement somewhere. I've got Carlton. We'll find the victims next."

Niki catches movement in her peripheral and whips her head in my direction. Her brown eyes grow wide at the sight of me, her lips breaking into my favorite smile. "Dylan is here, he's safe," she breathes. "For now."

I frown. It's obvious from her first statement that she was worried about me, but her second remark is laced with anger. I want to wrap her in my arms.

Carlton groans painfully. "You?"

I shake my head. "Nah, this was all her."

Niki smiles wickedly as she faces Carlton. "I had help," she shrugs.

Charles moves to restrain the men on the ground. He ties up their wrists and ankles and then positions them against the wall. He drags the man with a broken leg and does the same. I want to tell him that's pointless since the man's bone is jutting out, but I look at Niki instead.

I point to the injured men questionably, lingering over the one with a broken shin bone and she shrugs. "It was either that or shoot him with his own gun."

I move closer and she retreats. Just one step, but it feels like she's miles away. The desire to run my hands over her entire frame, to examine that she's physically alright, twists my insides, but her sudden withdrawal cuts me deeper. It's evident that she's angry and I need that shit to stop.

"Come out with it."

"You used me."

A heavy sigh escapes me. Fuck. "Never."

Her nostrils flare, and she allows one bare foot to take a tentative step toward me. "Then why didn't you tell me? Why keep it from me?"

From the corner of my eye, I notice Charles manhandling Carlton, ignoring his questions and instead demanding he take us toward the innocents who are held somewhere in the maze-like cellar. "I couldn't walk in here empty-handed. Men like him always play ugly, and I needed to make sure we came ready for anything. Would you honestly have allowed me to tag along if I'd told you?"

She's thinking, and I watch as scenarios play before her lids, images of disaster after disaster, and her tense jaw gives a tiny flex. I reach out and gently stroke the back of my hand over her jawline and her wall crumbles. "I couldn't risk it, fox. You can't expect me to dangle your safety in a den full of fucking vipers."

The edge of her lips curve up and I relax. Her grin is addicting and the anger she was holding melts away. For now.

Charles's agitated voice brings us back. He whips Carlton's wrists, jostling him, and pulls him backward in a forceful thrust. "The prisoners."

"What, like I'll lead you straight to them?" Carlton scoffs.

Charles shakes him roughly and whips his gun out. He cocks it and touches the tip to Carlton's temple. "You will, unless you want your brains scattered all over these walls."

Carlton can't turn fully, but his eyes search for me desperately. "You gonna approve this sort of infraction? You're an officer of the law, for fuck's sake!"

Charles and I laugh. His is a cynical one, as if he lacks trust in me or any law enforcement agency. My laugh is one of true humor. I approach Carlton, my smile gone. I tap his chest with the gun I stole from one of his men. "If it were me, I would've shot you on sight."

Niki keeps the gun she's holding aimed at Carlton's head. "Do we need him to get to those who are captured?"

Charles sighs loudly and taps his gun lightly against Carlton's temple. "Unfortunately, we do. I don't have the codes for the next two doors."

I roll my shoulders and try to move my neck from side to side until I hear the bones crack. "Can we blow it up?"

Charles clicks his tongue against his cheek. "Not unless you want the cellar to collapse."

"Dylan, take my earpiece. Jason wants our location."

I walk to her and circle behind. Her skirt is intact, she's still shoeless, and her top is missing so many pearls I want to strangle someone. I growl under my breath and move her hair back behind her shoulders and take the earbud.

"Did the girls make it out?"

Jason breathes into my ear. "They did. Looks like when you entered Justice's space, I was able to reestablish connectivity. I suppose you're still wearing the collar?"

I ignore the slight humor in his tone. It's on my person still, but I don't want to explain myself. "You'll need to guide the team to an elevator with black doors directly behind the east wing lavatories on the third floor. There's a double code access."

Charles clears his throat. "Eight, seven, two, nine, Bravo, Echo, Quebec, four, eight, Uniform. The code will lead them to this specific tunnel entry. Any others are programmed to open on a different level. Which is why breaking into the server is nearly impossible."

"Oh, so we're dealing with smart criminals. Wonderful," Jason says. "I can't track you. I only have access to the earbud as long as that pretty choker of yours stays close. The cameras and locator are all offline."

His mood has shifted, must be due to his woman being at a safe location away from all of this shit. I huff a sigh of frustration. I want to be out of this fucking tunnel that suffocates the air all around us. I want to be with Niki, lying in bed naked, with her big brown eyes breathing life into me.

I breathe out an exhausted sigh etched with a grim purpose. "Guide the team down and I'll direct you the rest of the way. We're going to move."

I nod to Charles, who shoves Carlton forward. "Let's go, we don't have all fucking night."